Posted: 10/23/06
Counterpoint: Minnesotans deserve the facts
The following editorial is a counterpoint to the ECM Editorial Board 2006 Minnesota gubernatorial endorsement.
Last Wednesday, the ECM editorial board published their endorsement of Gov. Pawlenty for another four year term. While I respect the decision of the board, I am compelled to correct an erroneous statement made in that editorial. Specifically, the editorial perpetuates a myth that Gov. Pawlenty continually advances·that he "inherited a $4.5 billion budget deficit." In fact, Pawlenty was a lead architect of this budget deficit. Here's the history:
In 2001, after three years of budget surpluses, Gov. Jesse Ventura championed landmark property tax reform. This reform was simple. Reduce property taxes by an average of 18% by transferring most of the school funding obligations to the state level. To pay for it, he proposed expanding the sales tax to cover services and reduce the overall rate from 6.5% to 6%. Then Majority Leader Pawlenty supported the property tax relief but fought against the expansion of the sales tax to support the lost revenue. His success in blocking this permanent funding source is precisely what created the subsequent budget deficit.
When the state faced its first budget deficit of $1.9 billion the following year, Governor Ventura forwarded an evenhanded plan to fix the problem for the long term. That plan included a balance of budget cuts, tax increases and use of budget reserves. His goal was to spread the pain so that all Minnesotans "experienced a mild headache."
House Majority Leader Pawlenty and his fellow gubernatorial candidate Senate Majority Leader Roger Moe rejected Ventura's balanced plan. Instead, they led the effort to employ a series of accounting shifts and gimmicks to "fix" the budget. To complete this charade, the Pawlenty/Moe duo orchestrated an override of Ventura's passionate veto of their flawed plan. As a result of their shenanigans, Minnesota was stuck with a $4.5 billion deficit in 2003.
So here we sit five years later with Ventura's property tax cuts wiped out, taxes/fees that are more than twice what Ventura proposed, and a state that has made no progress in reforming health care, ensuring better outcomes for education, and transportation system that remains on life support. This is not leadership. If it wasn't for the strength of our private sector, we'd still be in a financial pickle.
The editorial board's praise of Gov. Pawlenty's newfound "flexibility" does not diminish the damage. He invented weasel words like "health impact fee" to worm out of a campaign pledge. He hides behind constitutional amendments to conceal the fact that he has not made building roads or restoring wetlands a budget priority (violating promises made to drivers and sportsmen). Even his reversal on the Northstar commuter rail line came years too late. We now are buying half the line for the same price (Big Lake vs. St. Joseph)
Gov. Pawlenty is fond of quoting Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan's phrase "you're entitled to your own opinion, but you're not entitled to your own facts." When the facts of Gov. Pawlenty's budget work are provided in the context of ECM's endorsement opinion, your readers may draw a different conclusion: that his management style is more about covering his tracks than providing authentic leadership.
For your readers who may prefer a better approach, I'll quote the same editorial: "(Peter) Hutchinson likewise has an impressive and imaginative record and has picked a strong running mate in Dr. (Maureen) Reed. The two have a plan that would move the state in a different direction to make affordable health care accessible to all Minnesotans."
Jim Moore
Chair, Independence Party of Minnesota
HometownSource.com
ECM Publishers, Inc.
4095 Coon Rapids Blvd.
Coon Rapids, MN 55433
